Keeping Up With The Jonze - filmmaker Spike Jonze - Interview

Interview, Oct, 1999

Spike Jonze's videos have had a place in skateboarders' VCRs since the early '90s, but to most people Jonze is simply regarded as "the guy who directed the Beastie Boys video." Which he is, but for the better part of the past decade, he has also been making the most cinematic, groundbreaking skate videos in the history of the sport, as well as innumerable music videos, commercials, and shorts. As a result, studios have been knocking down his door to get his name on their latest remake of Old Yeller or whatever hack project they've got In the works. But it's a small story named Being John Malkovich, with some not-so-small-time actors, that caught his eye. The plot may strike many as odd. A downtrodden puppeteer (John Cusack) who's waiting for a break is forced into the workforce by his wife (a greasy-faced, hard-to-recognize Cameron Diaz). His new job as a filing clerk leads him to find a portal directly into the mind of, you guessed it, John Malkovich. And that's when things get weird.

CHRIS NIERATKO: I really enjoyed your new film Being John Malkovich, but it seems such a departure from your earlier films like Do The Right Thing and Jungle Fever.

SPIKE JONZE: Oh, well, thanks. I'm glad you enjoyed the film but those other films are actually by Spike Lee.

CN: Right. I was saying Malcolm X had so much racial spark and this new one had none of that. Why?

SJ: Well, the thing is I didn't do that movie either. That was done by Spike Lee. This movie, Being John Malkovich, is actually the first movie I've ever done.

CN: I'm not sure I understand.

SJ: You have me confused with the other Spike. I'm a first-time filmmaker.

CN: And what's your name?

SJ: I'm Spike Jonze.

CN: Well, I'm not really prepared to interview you. I thought I was going to be talking about basketball and black filmmakers and things. Are you black?

SJ: No, I'm white.

CN: OK, scratch that. Well, why don't you tell me a bit about yourself while I think of something.

SJ: Well, I did the Weezer video where they're playing in Happy Days. Did you see that one?

CN: No.

SJ: I also did the Beastie Boys video for "Sabotage." Did you see that one?

CN: Yes. I know you! You're that kid from the Spiegel family that just got married to Francis Ford Coppola. Now I know you. That's a pretty rough life you have there, Spike. How do you cope?

SJ: You know, it's one day at a time, Chris. Thanks for asking. Do you want to talk about my movie now?

CN: Wait. Don't downplay your success, Spike. To succeed in the face of such adversity should be commended. Most people from such meager upbringings don't go on to greater things. You should be proud.

SJ: It's like fire and water, ice and vapor, earth, wind, and fire. I don't want to talk about this. Why don't we talk about your drinking problem?

CN: This isn't about me. I'm nobody, but you're Spike Lee and you're married to the guy who made The Godfather.

SJ: Well, yeah, basically I live out in New Jersey and I've been here all my life. I go down to Atlantic City probably three or four times a year to let off steam and catch my breath and get a new lease on life. And I'll tell you what you have to do, like once a year . . . you know how so much stuff gets built up around the house? You just have so much junk and you always put stuff away in drawers and you still have boxes from your last apartment. From me to you, Chris, once a year you have to set a weekend aside to go throw all that stuff away.

CN: If I do that, what will I wear? Do you think I might be able to get some free clothes from your dad's clothing catalog?

SJ: It's not my family's at all. People always say that because I have the same last name. But even if it was so, I don't think they would have anything that would fit you.

CN: Spike, when you married the Godfather, was your first thought, When I marry this man, the world is mine. Maybe I can even direct The Godfather, Part IV?

SJ: Seriously, if you're going to go sailing you have to know all the knots. I have a twenty-seven-foot boat that I'm repolishing the wood on and ripping out the hull. I know my knots.

CN: I can see you don't want to get into that. Spike, you make skateboard and music videos but in Being John Malkovich you have Cameron Diaz and John Cusack. Is it easier to get these people to work with you because you married Francis Ford Coppola?

SJ: I think it mostly goes back to my love for computer-generated information and my skills with modern technology and the cut-and-sew pattern. It's amazing what technological advances come out every year. Things get smaller, faster, and more powerful and enable you to make greater and more complex achievements. I never even got to meet those people but I don't think they'll be upset that I used their images.

CN: Aside from the casting of Cameron Diaz and John Cusack, I feel your movie is too clever for Joe America and doomed to failure. Why choose a project like this as your first film?

SJ: I don't know how it's going to do but I liked the script. This guy Charlie Kaufman wrote it and I felt I really wanted to do it. I like the way it turned out. I think the only thing that could have made this a better film and more accessible to everyone is if there were a few car explosions. I'm not sure how I could have worked that in but everyone loves to see cars flip over and explode, that's for sure. I know I do.